


Time ends with us

by softjohndae



Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: A lot of thoughts about the very essence of time, Alternate Universe - Dystopia, Angst, M/M, Minor Bang Chan/Lee Minho | Lee Know, Rebellion, Sort Of, Strangers to Lovers, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-25
Updated: 2020-12-25
Packaged: 2021-03-09 00:15:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 18,061
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27365641
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/softjohndae/pseuds/softjohndae
Summary: Changbin turns the time, he hates every second of it, and he no longer remembers how it feels to live.Seungmin has personal revolution in his eyes.
Relationships: Kim Seungmin/Seo Changbin
Comments: 19
Kudos: 74
Collections: STRAY KIDS MV FICFEST





	Time ends with us

**Author's Note:**

> Written for [SKZ MV FEST](https://twitter.com/skzmvfest); Inspired by Stray Kids' [Chronosaurus MV](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=12N0qEr_RGk).

Changbin turns the time. He’s a time turner. He works for the System. He’s a time turner for the System, and he hates it. He loathes it, he wants nothing to do with it, but he’s a time turner, and he has no way to get out. People are born to be time turners, they’re chosen before their births, and their youth is then stolen from them. Changbin is a time turner, he’s been a time turner for ages, he doesn’t know how long, time has no meaning for him. Except that it turns, it moves, it flows, yet nothing changes, everything is the same, always the same, and it changes all the time. Changbin turns the time, but not for his own benefit, but the System’s benefit. He’s sick of it. He doesn’t know his age, he doesn’t know his parents, he doesn’t know anything, except his time. Always his time. It’s exactly 5:02PM, 12th of July in 1923, that’s what his pocket watch says. He doesn’t know the real time, or if a real time even exists.

He walks towards an old building. It’s an abandoned factory, they used to make bullets in it for the World War. The first, at least, apparently there’s a second one right behind the corner but Changbin will never live to see it. Changbin turns around, no one is following him, before he opens the door. He doesn’t face an empty factory – instead, he faces a blindingly white hallway. The blue toned fluorescent lights make his eyes hurt. He closes the door behind him, before he begins to walk the hallway. It’s empty, it’s always empty. There are multiple doors on both sides with ticking clocks above them, the clocks open the doors as there are no other handles than doorknobs, Changbin knows he has to go through the last one. It’s always the last one. And he’s sick of it.

He opens the door, he isn’t the last one at the meeting. He still has three minutes to spare. There are eight chairs in the middle of the room, facing the wall, one after another. The room isn’t white, it never is. It’s old. Old as time. But time has no age. There are plastic wraps hanging from the ceiling. There are four clocks on the wall, none of them match Changbin’s. Underneath the clocks are old, rusted doors. Changbin doesn’t know what’s behind them, he never does. Perhaps nothing. Perhaps the System. Fence made of iron wire surrounds the room. Changbin doesn’t understand it, why is there iron wire fence, why are there clocks that don’t tell the time, why is there plastic hanging from the ceiling, but he doesn’t need to understand, that’s what he’s been told.

Felix is in the room. He’s sitting in the front. Changbin doesn’t really know Felix that much, they rarely speak, they’re rarely in the same report groups, except apparently this time. Sometimes there’s eight of them in the same group, sometimes two, but never has Changbin met anyone outside those eight people. It is always the same people, and yet he still barely knows them, he just knows their time. And that is why Changbin knows that Felix is from the past. Long gone past. His knuckles are bruised again, there’s mud on his white shirt. He’s from the 17th century, he wields a sharp sword, and an even sharper grin. “I’m two steps away from giving in”, that’s what he had said the last time at the report.

Chan sits next to him. He’s from the 21st century. He has tired eyes and his posture is slouching, his other shoe is untied, it looks like he’s been running. From what? The time? No one can run from the time. Behind Chan sits Jisung. If Felix is from the long gone past, Jisung is from even further. He has black streaks across his face, he has a nasty-looking wound on his arm. His dark robes are blood-stained. Changbin takes a seat next to him, they have two minutes. It would be quiet, but the tick tocks of the clocks reverberate through the air, nearly deafening. The door opens again, Minho steps in. He doesn’t fear the time, he basks in it, he’s a post-war baby, too, the fifties look good on him and his leather jacket.

Hyunjin follows after Minho through the white door with Jeongin. It looks like all of them will be present for today’s report. Hyunjin and Jeongin both have the same pain in their eyes. Hyunjin has a gun strapped to his thigh. Something is happening in the future, far from Changbin’s perspective, and he has no idea of it, and he’s not supposed to have an idea of it. “It’s all going downhill”, that’s what Jeongin had once said, tears in his eyes, “we can’t defeat them”. Changbin hadn’t understood. He still doesn’t.

He feels as the pair sits behind him. Hyunjin bounces his leg, he’s anxious, he’s always anxious. Then the door opens again, and to everyone’s surprise, as a distort in normal, two men in white suits drag Seungmin inside.  
“Let me go!”  
“Let. Me. Go. I’m done! I’m done with this shit! I’m not going back there!” He’s kicking, he’s screaming biting twisting turning and he’s hauled on the last seat. Changbin turns a bit to look at him, he’s bleeding from his nose, his knuckles are bruised, his other eye is made of glass. Or perhaps some kind of technology. His blindingly white clothes have more bloodstains in them. He coughs, spits blood on the ground as he gives up, as he does every time. Never has he looked that bad, though. Changbin feels sorry for him.

The lights go out, the screen before the seats lights up. It’s just a white screen. In the middle of it is the word ‘System’. It makes Changbin sick to his stomach.  
“Lee Felix, report”, a voice speaks from all over them.  
“No changes”, Felix answers.  
“Bang Chan, report.”  
“There’s an epidemic brewing in the east, it could spread and level up to a pandemic.”  
“Han Jisung, report.”  
“The church has taken footing in our community, I’m afraid the witch hunts will begin again.”  
“Seo Changbin, report.”  
“The twenties just keep roaring and the economy continues soaring.” Changbin’s mouth tastes like ash. He’s said the same words before, he’ll say them again.  
“Lee Minho, report.”  
“The war is as cold as ever, Che Guevara was assassinated last week.”  
“Hwang Hyunjin and Yang Jeongin, report.”  
“The usage of both nonrenewable and renewable resources has finally completely surpassed the earth’s capacity. The economy is at breaking point. People are starting to panic. There’s no going back”, Hyunjin says, his voice wavers.  
“Kim Seungmin, report.”

There’s a brief silence. Changbin can only hear Seungmin breathing.  
“They’re killing their own now. No one is safe. There’s no society. Everything’s broken down in a span of a few weeks. I want out. I’m done.”

But no one answers him.

“Thank you. You may return to your timelines.”

Felix is the one to rise from his seat. His sword clanks against the stool, as he walks up to the door and opens it before disappearing into the whiteness behind it. As the door closes, Chan rises up. Changbin turns a little on his seat; Seungmin is sitting in the last stool next to Jeongin. His eyes are filled with such grief and pain that Changbin doesn’t know how to put it into words. Jisung rises up, the door opens, shuts, Changbin rises up. He walks up to the door, but stops for a moment. Everyone else is staring at the screen, except for Seungmin, he’s staring at Changbin. Changbin nods.

He wants out, too. He’s done, too.

And then he fades into the whiteness of the hallway.

***

The glasses are clinking, there’s jazz music emanating from the corner of the club. Changbin sits on a sofa, it’s leathery, worn out, he has a glass in his hand. The bar is illegal. Speak easy, they say. The government has prohibited selling any sort of alcohol anywhere, but the prohibition doesn’t work. That’s human nature, if one can drown their sadness in a substance easily, they will do it, no matter the costs, no matter what the state says. Changbin is no different, he just doesn’t drown his sorrow, he drowns the passage of time. He wants to forget it, but the huge grandfather clock next to him won’t let him. Tick tock, it says, so Changbin rises up from his seat, forgets his gin and tonic on the table as he shuffles past the bodies to the exit. It’s hidden behind one of the curtain-covered doors in a fancy hotel. The lobby glimmers in golden, the floors are made of marble. Changbin’s footsteps are hollow, he pulls his suit jacket better around him, shivers as the cold air from outside envelopes him. He hates the weather. He hates the time. He just wants to rest.

The street is mostly empty, the streetlights are lit, it’s already late in the evening. It has rained the whole day, and now it’s finally stopped. It’s summer, the weather should be warm, but it isn’t. The wet asphalt sucks in the light, makes everything seem darker. Changbin’s shoes squelch in the puddles. He doesn’t mind. Why would he? He turns from the street corner to another, busier street. There are pairs, couples, lonely people, groups of people, some happy, some sad, some emotionless, all of them on their merry way to somewhere. Some of the little boutique windows are lit, there are hats and dresses and suits for men. Changbin needs a new one, perhaps he should go buy one next week. If there will be next week. That’s for the System to decide.

Changbin doesn’t understand it, but he doesn’t have to. He has his pocket watch, not a normal watch, oh no, just one made to look like a normal pocket watch. It tells him not only the time, but the date as well. 17th of July, 1923. It’s been five days since the report, the next one will be in two days. Changbin will get the time and place on the day of the report, that’s how it always goes. Unless the System decides to turn the time. Changbin knows that one day he will wake up and it will be 1st of January 1920 all over again. He doesn’t remember how many times he’s lived it, but he knows that he’s never lived past 31st of December 1929. He’s always in the roaring twenties. He will always be in the roaring twenties. He doesn’t know how many times he’s lived through the roaring twenties.

That’s how the System works. Perhaps it will tomorrow decide that they all have to start all over again, and then they will. Changbin doesn’t really know what they do, the only thing he knows is that he has to report all the big things happening in his surroundings. He knows there are other people like him in his timeline, too, but he’s never met them, and he will never meet them. He doesn’t know how the timelines work either. Perhaps the seven people he knows are all living in different realms, in different timelines all at the same time. He knows Felix isn’t from his timeline. He’s never read of Felix in any history books, in any genealogy works, in anything. There’s no trace of him. He’s tried searching for him. There’s no traces of Jisung, either, so they must have been completely erased from the history somehow, or the timelines they live in are of completely different worlds. Changbin doesn’t know, but that’s how he imagines it. How else can they be in different timelines at the same time otherwise?

But Changbin doesn’t need to know, he’s simply a time turner, living in the roaring twenties. He’s lucky, he’s living in a post-war world that is slowly gathering itself back together, the economy is soaring, it’s nearly all fun and games. Nearly, as in the major political changes aren’t all that good fun. But Changbin doesn’t need to care about them, he’s simply an observer, a fleeting shadow who knows no one, and no one knows him.

And he’s sick of it. He’s sick of the loneliness. He’s never been given a chance to be anything else, to develop any relationships apart from those he made while training to be a time turner, he’s never known anything else but time. In the reports he’s supposed to tell the System all major events, or any disturbances in the timeline. Disturbances mean people from other timelines, people who aren’t supposed to be in his time, but somewhere else. Changbin doesn’t know why it’s important to the System, as they are capable of starting the decade all over, but for some reason, it is.

But he doesn’t know, he doesn’t understand, and he doesn’t need to. Changbin hears piano music from one of the open windows of a restaurant. He turns from the next corner to a smaller alley, and finds his way home.

***

It’s the same white hall again, the same door, the same room, Changbin is the first one to sit down. It doesn’t take long for the door to open again, and surprisingly, this time Seungmin walks through it on his own. The System isn’t forcefully dragging him through it this time. Seungmin sits down next to Changbin, Changbin tries really hard to just stare in front of him at the screen, but he fails.

  
Because he is curious.

  
Seungmin is so far in the future that Changbin can’t even picture how the world he lives in looks like. He’s wearing the purest white clothes Changbin has ever seen, purer than those of the System’s workers’ clothes. There are no longer bloodstains in them. Instead, he now has a blue scarf tied around his arm. Even if he doesn’t have the bloodstains, he still doesn’t look any better than the last time, he’s beaten up and bruised, Changbin still feels sorry for him. He’s the complete opposite of Seungmin, in his grey suit, white shirt and suspenders, a little black bow tie around his neck. Seungmin clearly isn’t just a presence, a fleeting shadow in his timeline, he’s something else. He’s someone. Someone with value. Changbin is just a shadow.

Suddenly Seungmin turns to look at Changbin. His glass eye doesn’t match his own eye, it’s bright blue. Except that perhaps it is not a glass eye, as the blue iris is constantly shifting. Perhaps it is some sort of technology that Changbin has no knowledge of. The only technology his timeline knows is that of destruction.

The door opens again, it’s Minho. The screen flickers alive just as he enters, there won’t be anyone else today. Minho sits down, he looks the same as always, he has a little grin tugging the corner of his mouth.  
“Seo Changbin, report.”  
“No changes. The twenties just keep roaring and the economy continues soaring.”  
“Kim Seungmin, report.”

There’s a silence. A moment turns into another, Seungmin breathes in.  
“They have started to divide people in the categories. The air isn’t breathable, we have finally moved to live underground. I’m afraid the crimes against humanity will begin again. They always do in situations like this. Dividing is never a good thing”, he mutters, quiet. Changbin hears the pain in his voice.  
“I want out”, Seungmin mumbles.

There’s a breath of silence. Another breath. Third.  
“I want out, too”, Changbin says, his voice loud and steady in the quiet room. The silence is deafening, until it breaks.

“Lee Minho, report.”

Seungmin glances at Changbin with a quirked eyebrow.

***

“I want out, too.” It rings in Changbin’s ears. It rings in his ears the entirety of the next week. There are no other reports, he’s just living in his timeline, lounging around, following the news, keeping an eye on his surroundings. Nothing’s different, the time just passes, but Changbin doesn’t. He no longer remembers how to live in the moment.

He fishes his keys out of his suit jacket’s pocket. The number of cars in the city has started to increase as the common folk have finally gathered access to them, he hears honking from the street. Changbin opens the lock on the door to his apartment, his flat is on the second floor of a rather new apartment building. It’s on the better side of the city. It’s what the System has given him. He doesn’t need to worry about anything, he just lives in there, spends money that’s not his and never runs out, kills time. Oh, how he wishes he could kill time.

“You’re tired of all this, too?” A voice startles Changbin, nearly makes him pull his gun out of his breast pocket. He can see directly from the hallway to his kitchen.  
“How the hell did you get in here?” Changbin asks, he’s frightened, his heart is beating a little too fast. He drops his leathery briefcase on the floor.  
Seungmin snickers, “I have my ways”, as he stands up from the stool next to the kitchen table. Changbin is wary, what the hell is he doing here, how did he get here, where’s the System, what if the System finds out?  
“Relax, no one knows I’m here”, Seungmin smirks, as he strolls from the kitchen to the little living room next to the short hallway. There’s not much in it, a shelf full of books, a desk with a typewriter and a couple of armchairs in the middle. All in wooden colors and deep browns. The view from the window is pretty, it’s a park, there are a few people having a picnic on the lawn. Changbin takes off his suit jacket and places it on one of the backrests of the armchairs as Seungmin draws the curtains close.

“Just to keep the System out. Are you not going to be a good host and brew me a cup of coffee?” It takes a moment for Changbin to completely understand what Seungmin has just said.  
“Oh”, he mumbles, as he turns around and walks to the kitchen. He hears Seungmin opening a door to his little bedroom.  
“Nice paintings”, he comments, Changbin only hums as an answer as he pulls out his coffeepot from the cupboard and turns the gas stove on. He places two mugs on the kitchen table. He’s winded, why is Seungmin here? He’s supposed to be four hundred years away from him.

Seungmin walks into the kitchen and sits down. Changbin looks at him, he doesn’t even know what to say. The boy looks the same as ever, there’s a cut underneath his eye, he’s wearing clothes that nearly blend into the roaring twenties. How did he get here? Without anyone noticing?  
“Aren’t you supposed to be-?”  
“In 2464.”  
“How did you-?”  
“Technology sure develops quickly in four hundred years.”  
“But why are you-?”  
“You said you’re tired of this.”

He did. Seungmin is right.  
“I did.”  
“Good. You’re not the only one. We are not the only ones.”  
“Oh?”  
“All of us are. All eight of us, the whole 66th squad. We’re all sick of it, sick of the System.”  
Changbin glances at the door, he’s half sure the System hears them talking.  
“They won’t hear us, I made sure of that.”  
“What did you do?”  
“Shut off the listening devices temporarily. They won’t notice, I’ve done it multiple times before in Chan’s timeline. And Minho’s. Hyunjin and Jeongin’s timeline is harder to get to, they move around a lot. And I can’t properly blend into Felix’s, let alone Jisung’s timeline, so we just share messages.  
“Messages?”

The coffee pot starts to whistle, Changbin takes it off the stove and pours a bit to Seungmin’s cup.  
“Milk? Sugar?”  
“Neither, thank you.”  
He pours himself some, too and then places the coffee pot on a stovetop that isn’t hot and retrieves a bottle of milk from his fridge. Seungmin may like his coffee black, but Changbin doesn’t. When he comes back, there is a… thing on the table in front of his seat. He sits down, examines it, but doesn’t dare to touch it.

“What’s this?”  
“For delivering messages.”  
Changbin glances at Seungmin as he pours some milk into his coffee. There’s a flower in a little vase on the table, in front of the window. Summer shines through it, glimmering golden in Seungmin’s deep brow eye. The blue one seems like shifting in the early evening. The suit he is wearing is a rather good replica of the clothes of the time, so good that they’re too good, he looks a little out of place. His brown suit jacket is a bit too big on him. He has forgotten earrings in his ears, there’s a tiny tattoo peeking from underneath the collar of his shirt. His hat doesn’t suit the rest of his clothes.

Changbin takes the thing from the table, it feels heavy in his hand. It’s made of some sort of grey metal.  
“How do you even know that I can be trusted?”  
“You wouldn’t say that you’re tired just out of the blue, wouldn’t you? No one dares to go against the System, especially those who have been brought up by it as you are. Aren’t you?”  
“I am.”  
Seungmin leans back against the backrest of his stool. He takes the cup of coffee and drinks from it, before leaning in again and taking the device from Changbin’s hands. He clicks it, and the device opens. There’s a little keyboard and a small screen that lights up.  
“Don’t let anyone see this, hide it well. Don’t take it into the reports. If you just type a message with this and press enter, it will send the message to everyone who has the device.”  
“Is that a mobile phone or whatever they call it?” Changbin asks. He’s heard of those things.  
“No, it’s a little different.”  
“Oh.”  
“The device will buzz when you receive a message, and to read it you need to just click the device open.” Seungmin closes the device and clicks it open again. Changbin nods.  
“The message won’t disappear until a new one appears, or you send a message yourself. You can’t read past messages, so if there’s going to be some important information, write it down somewhere, but hide it well in case the System is going to pay you a visit.”  
Changbin nods again. Seungmin hands the device back to him. His brown hair curls against his forehead a little. He would look like a puppy if it wasn’t for the vigor in his eyes. The sharpness on his tongue. It intimidates Changbin, a lot.

Seungmin leans back again, stretches a little before raising the cup of coffee to his lips. Changbin remembers his own as well, takes a swig. Seungmin's eyes travel around the small kitchen, before he looks out of the window.  
“Your time is so beautiful.” The sharpness from his tongue is gone. He looks outside a little longingly. Changbin cocks an eyebrow at him.  
“How so?”  
“I haven’t seen the sky properly in a while.”

Changbin doesn’t really understand. He knows the things are bad, but… he hasn’t seen the sky?  
“We are mostly locked in groups of people underneath the earth’s surface, or in bunkers above the surface, or anywhere where the air can’t get to us. Everything is toxic. There’s at least four different dictators battling for the leadership, people die because of them all the time. Most of the earth’s population vanished because of a war and a few pandemics in the 24th century. Only we remain. From ten billion to half a million. It’s a dystopian hell. The end times. The last generation. But we deserve it, after all we did to the Earth.”

Changbin swallows, there’s pain in Seungmin’s voice. Changbin can’t even express with words how sorry he is. He can’t even comprehend the amount of pain Seungmin is in. He can’t understand a world where he wouldn’t be able to see the sky. And Seungmin has to live in it, year after year, the time never passes for him, he has to live in that hell for all eternity.

“I’m sorry”, Changbin mutters. Seungmin’s eyes flicker in his for a moment. He downs his drink at once, before placing his cup of coffee in front of him.  
“Don’t be, just be happy that you get to breathe fresh air every day. My time is up.”

And with that he stands up, and strides over to the door.  
“Wait!” Changbin calls after him.

But it’s too late. He closes the door after him, and Changbin knows there’s five hundred years between them.

***

A report. Chan is sitting in the room. He eyes Changbin, his eyebrow quirked a little. Minho is sitting next to him, they have clearly been whispering to each other. Jisung sits behind Minho, he looks like he’s been on the run for the past days, his clothes are torn, there’s mud on his face. Changbin sits next to him. Tick tock, the clocks say, drilling themselves into Changbin’s brain. He hands a handkerchief from his pocket to Jisung, who thanks him and cleans the mud off of his face, before he hands the little white cloth back. Changbin has to take it, they can’t leave the room with anything from the other timelines in their pockets. The door opens again, Seungmin walks in and sits behind Changbin. He’s in pure white again, he looks a bit better, perhaps the killing has stopped for a moment. There are no bloodstains on him.

The screen lights up, the word System makes Changbin feel sick. It’s been three days since Seungmin visited, and the device has been quiet ever since. According to him, everyone in the room is on board, they have the devices, too, they are the 66th squad. How long have they been in this? How long has Changbin been alone?

“Lee Minho, report.”  
“Nothing new. The war in the east is deepening little by little. There are some protests against it.”  
“Bang Chan, report.”  
“Nothing new. The epidemic is spreading rapidly.”  
“Seo Changbin, report.”

This would be the time, when he could tell the System that Seungmin has visited his timeline. The timeline has been disrupted. He feels Seungmin’s eyes at the back of his head. Is he to be trusted? Is Changbin with them, or against them? What would happen, if he told the truth? Would the System kill Seungmin? And all the others?  
“The twenties just keep roaring and the economy continues soaring”, he says. Of course he does. He feels the gaze letting go of him.  
“Han Jisung, report.”  
The boy next to Changbin sighs: “Same old, there’s a new king in France.”  
“Kim Seungmin, report.”  
“Dictatorships are tearing people and what’s left of any societies apart. Otherwise nothing has changed.”

“Thank you. You may return to your timelines.”

Seungmin’s hand brushes against Changbin’s shoulder as he leaves.

***

Changbin is nearly at peace. Just nearly, he’s never completely at peace, but he feels somewhat content at the moment. The birds are singing in the trees of the park, there are a few couples sitting on the benches next to a fountain. It’s a beautiful fountain, it rises high, the sun shines at it at such an angle that a little rainbow dances against the droplets. The briefcase in Changbin’s hand is heavy, he’s coming from “work”. He works as a journalist, but he’s not a very good one. He isn’t very invested in his work, it’s just easier for him to keep up with the world that way. He sees it more as a hobby, and not a very enjoyable one. He knows that people usually try to find something enjoyable in their lives as time turners, but Changbin just… isn’t capable of doing that. He doesn’t really find joy in anything anymore. Back in the day, when he first started as a timeturner, he had been so keen on exploring the world, he could do whatever the hell he wanted, he traveled a bit, moved around, tried everything, saw everything. Got tired of everything. And now he’s just a hollow shell, living a day at a time, he doesn’t really find joy in anything. At least not that deep kind of joy. Happiness.

Changbin sits down on one of the benches, puts the briefcase down. He does enjoy things. He enjoys the pretty park next to his home. He enjoys the sandwiches he buys from the coffeeshop next to his workplace every morning. He enjoys occasionally some company, his workmates are fine, but they’re just that – mates. People he will lose when the System decides to turn time again. He’s learned it the hard way already, he made the mistake of falling in love with someone within the first seven years of his time, and then the System decided to start the decade all over again, and he lost them. After that he had sworn he wouldn’t feel a thing for anyone ever again. The memory no longer hurts him, it’s been ages since that happened, but he still remembers it, nevertheless. And he remembers how painful it was. And he never wants to experience it again.

“Can I sit down?” The voice startles Changbin out of his thoughts.  
“I suppose you would do so anyway even if I declined.”  
Seungmin snickers as he sits down on the bench next to Changbin.  
“Enjoying the view?” Seungmin is wearing the same clothes as he did the last time. There’s a bruise forming underneath his eye.  
“Yes”, Changbin mutters. His briefcase presses against his leg. Changbin has learned it the hard way, always keep your belongings close to you, so he’s picked up a habit to touch his belongings at all times when he’s public.  
“It’s a pretty view. We don’t have fountains anymore.”

And again. Changbin feels sorry for Seungmin. Seungmin breathes in, closes his eyes for a moment as he leans back against the backrest of the bench. His hands are tugged into the pockets of his trousers.  
“Your air is so fresh, too… I wish I could live here instead of… that hell.” The air isn’t clean, not by any means, the factories at the edge of the city make sure of that.  
“Can’t you ask the System for a change?” Changbin asks.  
“I have. They won’t let me. Surviving in the 25th century requires special skills and teaching those to new people takes a long time.”  
“Special skills such as?” Changbin is curious.  
“You aren’t a tad bit worried that the System might be listening to us at the very moment, are you?”  
“If you’re here, then no. I trust that you have learned your ways around it. And the System doesn’t have time to patrol around the cities.”  
“You are correct, thank you for trusting me. Special skills mostly consist of survival skills in toxic environment. Similar things as have been taught to Jisung, but a bit harsher and more extreme. I have had to kill to survive. I have had to abandon people to survive. And I can’t do anything drastic, because I need to stay under the radar, especially when anyone suspicious is thrown outside without a gas mask. And I can’t do anything to anyone, except when I’m trying to protect myself, because as you know, we can’t do anything to change the timeline, we just need to let history flow and go as it wishes, as the normal people wish. And I hate it. I hate it so much, I just want humanity to survive but I know it won’t, not when there are so many different people reaching for power and everyone just wants to stay alive and staying alive means getting rid of other people. It just doesn’t work, humanity has been forgotten, empathy has been forgotten, it’s just pure survival of the fittest and the richest.”

Changbin just stares at Seungmin. He’s bitter. He’s in so much pain. He’s grieving for the loss of humanity. And Changbin is just flowing through time, easier than anyone of their little squad. He’s lucky. He’s fortunate. Seungmin isn’t.  
“I’m sorry that you have to-“  
“Shut up. Let me just enjoy this quietness and peace for a moment.”

So Changbin shuts up. Seungmin basks in the sunlight, he looks pale. He looks tired. After a moment of silence, he continues:  
“Tell me something nice. Something about your normal. How was your day?”  
“It was fine. I wrote a few articles of the newly built apartment buildings at 45th street. After that I went to grab lunch with my workmates, and then had a little meeting.”  
“So you’re a journalist?”  
“I am.”  
“Nice. Do you like writing?”  
“A bit. I prefer writing fiction over news articles, though.”  
“Oh? What kind of fiction do you write?”  
“Uhm… poems. Little historical novels.”  
“That’s nice.”  
“Mmhm.”

A moment of silence. There’s some talking traveling over the air from the other side of the park, laughter, a car passes by the park. It’s all so… normal to Changbin, but not to Seungmin. Something in Seungmin’s pocket buzzes. He opens his eyes and straightens himself.  
“I need to go.”  
Changbin nods and stands up, he takes his briefcase from the ground.  
“When will we meet again?” He asks.  
“Would you like to meet again?” The look in Seungmin’s eyes is a bit surprised, a bit curious. He eyes Changbin up and down.  
“Yes?”  
“Hm. Soon, I hope. See you.”  
“See you.”  
And with that, Seungmin starts to walk to the opposite direction to where Changbin is headed.

***

Soon isn’t as soon as Changbin would wish it to be. Days pass, bleed into weeks, there’s a report where Seungmin doesn’t acknowledge Changbin in any way. He has a new bruise on his cheek, something has changed in Hyunjin’s eyes, and Changbin knows that something is the survival instinct. For a moment Changbin wonders what happens in between Hyunjin and Jeongin’s and Seungmin’s timelines, if they’re connected. Perhaps they aren’t, after all, Seungmin lives four hundred years away from them, and society is already falling in Hyunjin and Jeongin’s timeline.

Soon isn’t as soon as Changbin would wish it to be, and it makes him feel something. He hasn’t really felt anything in a long time, so it rather surprises him. He doesn’t even know Seungmin properly, he only knows where he’s from, and that he has an odd eye and he somehow knows how to jump the timelines, but that’s it. Why is he so looking forward to meeting him again? Is it because Changbin hasn’t had any friends in a while? Is it because, despite their different timelines, they can still see each other and remain as friends, even if the decades were to start all over again? Or is Changbin simply overthinking this?

Perhaps it’s because Seungmin symbolizes freedom in Changbin’s mind. He puts up a fight, he wants out, and he’s made that clear even to the System. That’s something Changbin would never dare to do, not alone, but now Seungmin, and apparently all the others want out, too, and Changbin isn’t as lonely as he had thought he was. He’s found power in himself, to believe in a better tomorrow again. But Seungmin doesn’t still leave his mind, Changbin is getting antsy, is everything alright, when will he visit again? Has the story of the last generation already ended? Is the Earth in ruins?

And suddenly, there’s a knock on the door, and Changbin springs up from the sofa. His afternoon tea has gone cold already. Changbin can’t contain himself, he strides to the door as fast as he can, opens the lock in haste and swings the door open. And on the other side, is Seungmin, lips quirked to a small grin.  
“Hurrying somewhere?”  
Changbin’s heart skips a beat.  
“Oh, oh no, I was just having… afternoon tea. I got back from work a while ago.”  
Changbin steps away from the door, lets Seungmin in.  
“Afternoon tea? I thought you were coffee kind of a guy.”  
“Why pick one when they’re both just as good?”  
Seungmin doesn’t bother to take his shoes off, they both know he’s not going to visit for long. He doesn’t have time to do that. A bit ironic, perhaps.

Changbin follows after Seungmin to the little living room, where the boy plops down on the sofa. Then Changbin turns around, quickly retrieves a cup of tea for Seungmin as well, even if his own is already lukewarm.  
“How have you been lately?” Seungmin asks, takes the cup with a nod.  
“I’m fairly sure you already know how.” Changbin sits on the armchair opposite to Seungmin, pulls his own teacup over the little glass table to him. The cups are white porcelain, they have little golden flowers painted on them.  
“I do, but I wanted to be polite, isn’t that all you do in the ‘roaring twenties’?” Seungmin smirks, blows air to cool his hot tea a bit.  
“You have quite a positive picture of my time.”  
“It’s better than mine, and anything is positive compared to that.”  
Changbin smiles a bit apologetically to Seungmin, before taking a swig from his cup. Lukewarm tea isn’t good, but he’s too stubborn to go get a new one.  
“How about you?” He asks, just to be polite.  
“I’ve been on the run for the past two days. But we found a place to stay for a while, so I guess it’s getting a bit better.”

Changbin nods, he doesn’t know what to say.  
“I thought you would ask me why I’m here?” Seungmin lowers his teacup on the table, before leaning against the backrest of the sofa. His suit jacket is still a bit too big on him, and the colors don’t match.  
“You said you’d come.”  
“Hmmh. True.”  
“Has there been any progress? In the plans or… I don’t know.” Changbin is still a little wary, he looks around, hopes Seungmin has somehow silenced the listening devices again. He nods, just ever so slightly, just to reassure Changbin, that he has done that. Again.  
“Not really. Chan has found something; he’s looking into it. That’s why there has been no messages.”  
Changbin nods. He’s checked the device nearly religiously every day after work, but it’s been quiet. Too quiet, for a few days Changbin had been afraid that Seungmin had just lied to him, or that he had broken the device accidentally, but Seungmin wouldn’t lie to him, not about such a huge thing as… this, and the screen of the device still lit up every time Changbin opened it.

“How did your timeline end up as such a mess?” Changbin asks the question that has bugged him for a while now.  
“A few decades prior to mine there was what we refer to as the third World War. All the superpowers, five at that time decided to blow each other up with nuclear weapons. They destroyed basically everything, and with the climate change came the pandemics that killed people left and right at, and now only a handful of people remain. In my decade they were just trying to keep the society alive somehow, but as I’ve told, it’s not working anymore, since everyone wants to be on the throne.”  
Changbin nods, again. He doesn’t know what else to do either, he can’t relate with Seungmin on any level. His life has always been easy, if he were to live in the decade prior to his, then not so much, with the war and all that. But now it’s just easy sail. Boring.

“Can I visit there sometime? Since you keep visiting here.”  
Seungmin shakes his head: “You can’t.”  
Changbin frowns, he had hoped to see what the chaos five hundred years away from him was.  
“Why?”  
“Too dangerous for you. You don’t know how to survive there, and you don’t know how the timeframes work.”  
“Timeframes?”  
“Think of them as little wormholes between the timelines. You go through one every time you attend a report. There are multiple timeframes in between the timelines, they’re just very hard to find.”  
“I suppose you won’t tell me where the one is that you’re using?”  
“I won’t. Knowing you, you'll decide to travel to my time and end up getting yourself killed. And there’s many things you need to remember while traveling, and I know for a fact you still have your chip in your neck.”

With the mention of the chip Changbin nearly unconsciously touches the little part just above his white shirt’s collar. He can feel the chip underneath his skin. It’s been there… forever.  
“And you don’t?” Changbin asks, curiously.  
Seungmin shakes his head: “I tore it out when me and Chan first started planning this. The… escape. He taught me how. I carry it in my pocket usually, when I’m on my own timeline, so the System doesn’t notice. It’s currently nighttime in my timeline, so they won’t be alarmed if I don’t move around much.”  
“So you can just… take it out?”  
“Yeah. It just hurts like hell, so I suggest you get another person to do it for you. And then you need to cover your neck at all times, until the wound is fully healed and then you need to carry it with you until the end. And you will have to take it out at some point in order to escape, so prepare yourself mentally for the pain.”  
“Will you take it out for me, then?” Changbin doesn’t even know who else he would ask. Not his work acquaintances, for sure, and no one else has visited his timeline except for Seungmin. The corner of Seungmin’s mouth quirks up a little.  
“If you so wish.”  
“I wish.”  
“One day, then. Not today, my time is running out again.”

It wrenches Changbin’s insides. He doesn’t want Seungmin to go, he enjoys his company, he thinks they get along rather well. And Seungmin understands him. He understands the grief of losing that comes with new beginnings every time, he understands why Changbin wants out, and he understands what it is like to live and live and live, but never truly be alive. Changbin likes his company. And he doesn’t want the boy to go, to return to the dystopian hell as a part of the last generation.

Seungmin looks slightly sad, as he rises from the sofa again. His teacup is only half way finished.  
“Will we… will we meet again?” Changbin bits the inner skin of his cheek. He probably shouldn’t even ask, but he does, nevertheless.  
“If you so wish.” And he does. He certainly does. Part of him hopes Seungmin wishes, too.  
Changbin nods, so does Seungmin, as he tugs his hands into his pockets and turns around the corner to the hallway, which leads to the door. Abruptly Changbin stands up:

“Wait!” He runs after Seungmin, catches him when he’s just at the door. Changbin reaches for something from the top of the coat rack next to the door. It’s a plain black hat, not a grey checkered one, as Seungmin’s.  
“Take this. It fits your outfit better.”

Seungmin takes the hat in his hands, examines it a little, before taking his hat off and handing it to Changbin. He puts the black hat on his brown locks, that cover the rings in his ears.  
“Thanks.”

***

They meet again. And again. Seungmin visits Changbin, they walk along the park next to Changbin’s house. Changbin lets Seungmin soak in the sun, they share a silence. Seungmin looks a little better, he hasn’t had to fear for his life for a few days. Changbin thinks this is nice, if not more than nice. It’s easy to be around Seungmin, despite their differences. Changbin also learns more of him, Seungmin is always twenty years old as Changbin is twenty-one. Seungmin is bright, brilliant, in fact, he understands things quickly, and Changbin doesn’t need to explain everything to him. He adapts easily, he finds himself a better fitting suit jacket and looks like he actually belongs to the nineteen twenties.

Seungmin is also odd. He has an odd way to view the world, it differs from Changbin’s. Changbin is a bit of a dreamer, he dwells on the what-ifs, while Seungmin is simply pure facts, and he doesn’t have time to think about the what-if. He loathes humanity as much as he grieves for it, he doesn’t feel like he belongs anywhere, and he has a savior complex that he’s trying to get rid of, since it will only end up killing him in his timeline. Seungmin is the sort of person that Changbin could write historical novels about, only he is from the future.

Seungmin wants to know about normal, he wants to breathe, so Changbin lets him, and tells him about his normal. Changbin is numb against the harshness of the world, he’s accepted the realities and simply lets the time carry him on, until it’s time to start all over. Realities mean that he likes to read, he fancies art, he could forget himself in the endless hallways of the museum a few blocks away from the city center. The cashier at the museum is most likely the only person on Changbin’s timeline that will remember him as the time passes. Changbin likes to play billiard, he promises to teach Seungmin some time, he also likes the atmosphere in the speakeasy around the corner, that he visits more frequently than the fancy one in the hotel. He doesn’t really care for whiskey, but orders one every time he visits the bar, nevertheless. He doesn’t know what else to order, when he has to blend in with the others.

It’s nice, they get to know each other in a way that Changbin hasn’t been used to in a while. He always looks forward to Seungmin’s visits, looks forward to seeing him in the reports, even if he knows that sometimes he won’t see him there. Sometimes their timelines don’t align, and that’s just how it is. But Changbin still looks forward to seeing him, which he finds a little odd at first, they have known each other forever, right? Not in a friend-way, but in a workmates-way. Why is this suddenly a thing now? He hasn’t looked forward to other people’s company like this in ages. Maybe it’s the connection. It is the connection, Changbin knows enough of the world to know that.

He eats his dinner at the kitchen table in a somewhat troubled peace, alone, when suddenly the device next to him buzzes. The buzz is so harsh that it startles Changbin, he drops his fork on the table, it clinks against the porcelain plate. Changbin stares at the device, scared for a moment, before he dares to reach for it and opens it with a gentle click.  
There screen lights up, there’s a message  
[FROM:] Bang Chan  
The doors lead to somewhere

Changbin has no idea what that means. But it stirs excitement in him.

***

The first message starts up a series of messages. They’re mostly Chan’s, Jeongin’s and Seungmin’s messages. Changbin feels an odd stir in the pit of his stomach every time he reads Seungmin’s name on the screen. He himself doesn’t answer to any of the messages, in all honesty, he doesn’t really know how to. Or well, perhaps it works a bit like his typewriter, just in the… modern way. Felix and Jisung don’t send any messages either, they’re even more helpless with technology than Changbin is. Minho butts into the conversation occasionally. The messages are short, they mostly have important information in them. The doors lead to somewhere, those rusted, huge doors at the report place lead to somewhere, and that’s most likely where they need to head, since the timeframes don’t lead to anywhere else except other timelines. And if there is a way in, there is a way out, that’s what Seungmin says, so there needs to be a way out of the System, since it doesn’t exist in any of the timelines, or it exists in all of them. Changbin doesn’t know, but Seungmin apparently has a theory, and Changbin can’t help but admire Seungmin’s way of thinking. He’s so clever. He’s so bright. He’s so resourceful.

They need to go through the door, that is clear to them, but how, and how do they need to prepare? They know that they all need to be in the report at the same time for that to happen. They know that they need to keep the System out for long enough to open the door and go through it. They need more information on how the things will work out, what is the best way to act. Jeongin thinks he and Hyunjin may be able to get guns for them, if they can sneak them through timeframes and the hallways. They will need them, they will most likely need to fight. That makes Changbin anxious. It excites Seungmin.

But for now, they just need information. And to stay alive.

***

A report, nothing new, most of them are present, except for Seungmin and Minho. Nothing’s changed, which isn’t all that odd, change requires more time. Summer turns to autumn, the crisp mornings wake Changbin up from his sleepy slumber to boring days that repeat endlessly. The trees are pretty, though, and perhaps Changbin really likes autumn. It reminds him that nothing lasts forever. Nothing, except for him, for he doesn’t know if he’ll ever get out of the System.

And Seungmin visits him, again. Changbin is just about to leave to spend the night at the speakeasy around the corner, he wants to sink into its shadows with a notebook and follow people, because that’s his new hobby – watching people. Not in the perhaps creepy way, but in the research way, he needs the research for his new novel. But when he’s just about to open the door and leave, he hears a knock and on the other side he finds Seungmin.

“Going somewhere?” Seungmin motions to the black coat Changbin is wearing.  
“Uhm-“  
“Great! I’m coming with you.”

So Changbin takes Seungmin to the speakeasy around the corner. It’s laden with people and soft surfaces, sofas, armchairs, paintings, jazz music, dark corners. Bookshelves. Drunk people. Changbin takes Seungmin by his wrist as he pulls him to the bar counter, orders them both red wine. The bartender knows him, he smiles at him, then at his company, and Seungmin is smart enough to keep quiet and simply smile back.  
“New friend of yours?” The bartender asks, he has a lit cigarette in between his lips.  
“You could say that”, Changbin answers, as he takes their wine glasses and leads Seungmin to one of the dark corners that is always reserved for him. Changbin is pretty certain that the speakeasy is halfly still running due to the amount of money Changbin has spent on it.

Seungmin sits down on an armchair opposite to Changbin, the chair is velvety brown, a bit worn-out. He tastes the wine, scrunches his nose at the bitter taste on his tongue. Changbin snorts at him, he himself very much likes red wine.  
“Is this what you fancy people drink these days?”  
“Yes. And I wouldn’t call myself fancy.”  
“You wear a suit.”  
“So does basically everyone around here. You wear one if you’re from the city.”  
“I see”, Seungmin crosses his legs, dangles the other over the other. He glances around, eyes full of wonder. Changbin notices that he taps the armrest of the chair to the rhythm of the music. The soft light dances against his skin, deepens the shadows of his facial structure. He’s pretty. Handsome. Or something, Changbin has never been the one to differ those two.

“Fun day at work?” Seungmin turns his gaze from his surroundings to Changbin.  
“So-so. I nearly slept in, and my boss decided I needed to write a long article in two hours, usually we have several days to do that.”  
“Ouch. Did you manage?”  
“I did.”  
“That’s good.” Seungmin takes a sip of his wine again, this time he doesn’t seem to hate it as much. The jazz tunes fill in the air between them.  
“How was your day?”  
“Manageable. The situation is somewhat stagnant right now. I hope it will stay that way for a while, I don’t need any more conflict situations before I’m out.”  
Changbin nods.

That’s how they spend for a while. Seungmin stays for a little longer. Changbin finds himself laughing, their conversation flows away from their responsibilities and current situations to times long lost, to the good memories they have. Changbin likes it, he hasn’t felt nostalgia in so long, but Seungmin somehow coaxes that feeling out of him. That, and something else.  
“Next time I’ll take you to the museum.”  
“That’s a promise, then”, Seungmin smiles at him. His smile is contagious, it’s bright, nearly blinding. It’s warm, and rivals the sun herself.

But then Seungmin has to leave, as he always does. He turns to glance back at Changbin before he walks out of the door. His smile has something in it.

***

Changbin jolts awake as a harsh knock sounds from the door. He has no time to react, until the door suddenly swings open, bangs against the wall. The next thing he knows is that two men, dressed in white suits pull him up from the bed and push him against the wall, so hard that he hits the back of his head against it and sees stars for a moment. Terror grips him.

“Stay”, the man orders through a mask, Changbin doesn’t see his face, doesn’t recognize the voice, of course he doesn’t.  
“Search for anything out of ordinary”, the man commands his mate, before turning to Changbin.  
“Have you been doing anything out of your orders in the past weeks?”  
“N-no, sir.”  
“Then why did we find out that some of your listening devices have been shut off a few times from the outside?”  
“I have no idea, sir.”

A slap across Changbin’s cheek. He doesn’t falter.  
“Are you sure? Because we can cause you a lot more harm than this.”  
“Yes, sir.”  
“What are you planning? Is the 66th in this with you?”  
“Nothing, sir. No, sir.”

Changbin hears things being dragged in his living room, his bookshelves are thrown down, he can hear his typewriter dropping on the floor loudly, the man in his bedroom starts to rummage through his shelves and bureaus, full of clothes and albums full of photographs from the past days. Changbin can’t breathe, he feels the dread clasping its cold hands around him, he sinks down on the floor, please don’t find it, oh god, did he hide it well, is it in its place, what if they find it, what will happen to him and the others, is there something else that shouldn’t be in his apartment, how many rules has he broken?

Minutes pass, the noises don’t stop, he hears porcelain shattering, the man mumbles something incoherent.  
“I can’t find anything, boss! It’s just normal here.”  
“Where is it?” The man in the bedroom turns to Changbin, strides over to him and pulls him up from the floor by the collar of his royal blue pajamas.  
“Where is what?”  
“It!”  
“What it?”

A punch on the other cheek, it stings, hurts, tears well up on Changbin’s eyes.  
“Where is it?”  
“I have no idea what you’re talking about!” Changbin tries to back away, but he can’t. He gets another punch, right across his face, he feels blood dripping down from his nose. It hurts, but not that bad, he can manage it, if it means the others’ safety.

“Do you swear that you don’t know anything?”  
“I swear!” Changbin yells, the blood gets into his mouth, he spits it out.  
“We’ll be watching you”, the man mumbles right into his ear and lets go of him. Changbin slumps down on the floor again, his legs are shaking, he’s trembling, he’s afraid and hopes the man won’t notice. He doesn’t, because he storms away from the bedroom to the kitchen, and Changbin hears more porcelain shattering, followed by:  
“There’s nothing here. Let’s go.”

Changbin doesn’t dare to rise up until after multiple minutes of silence. The men are gone. His belongings are scattered everywhere, most of them broken. Changbin goes to the bathroom to retrieve himself a towel, his nose is still dripping blood, he hopes it’s not broken. He presses the towel against his nose. He’s still shaky, he hadn’t expected for the System to drop by, they have never done that before, not in such a manner. He glances himself at the bathroom mirror, he’s going to have a mighty bruise underneath his eye by tomorrow morning. Then he kneels down, moves one of the white tiles next to the bathtub away. Underneath it is a little safe, and in it is a wooden box. He opens the box, and in that box is the message device wrapped in a green velvet pouch. With shaky hands Changbin opens the device, and types a message. “Press enter” rings in his head with the voice of Seungmin.  
[FROM:] Seo Changbin  
The System just paid a visit. They’re suspecting something is going on.

***

The bleeding stops after a while, the shakiness doesn’t. He receives no answers, and only hopes that he was the first one the System went after, and the others had time to hide everything and prepare themselves for the worst. Changbin thinks about Seungmin, he worries, out of all of them he’s the most likely to be suspected of going against the conduct. A free soul. System doesn’t like that Changbin hides the device again and drags himself to the kitchen after closing the door to the stairway, watching out for his steps to not accidentally step on any shards of glass or porcelain. They really had to break everything, didn’t they? Where did they think Changbin would hide the messager, in a teapot? Daft, that’s what the System’s workers are (and Changbin is no different, in a way). Changbin sighs, he doesn’t have the energy to start cleaning up just yet. He walks to the living room, the bleeding from his nose has stopped, it’s not broken, just a bit sore. Changbin lifts his typewriter from the floor back to the desk, it’s not broken, luckily. The man had broken some of Changbin’s books in the process of trying to find… it. Whatever they had expected to find. Changbin returns back to his bedroom, it’s just as much a mess as the other rooms. Changbin bends down, picks up one of the albums full of photographs. It’s one of those things that moves timelines with him, it follows him everywhere, it is his way of keeping up with his own head along with his notebooks.

A few photographs have fallen out, Changbin picks them up from the ground. One particular one catches his eye. It’s them. From decades ago, dated 13.11.1922. A smile tugs the corners of Changbin’s mouth, he had nearly forgotten their face already. The photograph brings memories back to Changbin, memories of good times, shared laughter and long nights. It brings him back feelings, that one particular feeling that tingles his toes and twists his gut in a pleasant way, that one feeling he may have somewhat missed a bit, because he associates it with excitement and happiness.

And then he realizes that he hasn’t actually forgotten that feeling. He has started to feel it again, during the past few weeks, in between hasty moments, slow smiles and plans, that reach higher than the sky.

***

It takes Changbin the entire day to clean his house. His rubbish bin is filled with shards of glass and porcelain, he needs to get himself some new cups and plates. And a vase for his flowers, too, the System had broken that as well. The device keeps quiet, Changbin doesn’t hear it buzzing. The skin on his cheek feels heated, by the pain he knows that a bruise is on its merry way. With a sigh Changbin pushes the last book into the bookshelf, back to its own place.

He likes cleaning, so he’s not that mad about the situation. And he doesn’t have any right to be mad, either, he’s being suspected of illegal activities and he’s going against the orders, so he knows the consequences. He’s just worried, and worrying easily makes him irritated. He’s wary all the times, he wants to hear the device buzz, he wants to know that the others are okay. That Seungmin is okay.

Changbin likes to clean, because it gives him time to think. He isn’t sure what to think about the situation at hand, though. On one hand, he isn’t exactly in love with the idea of starting to fancy someone again, someone so far away from him. Someone so unreachable. Someone so… different. On the other hand, though, it’s nice to… feel something. Changbin had been pretty sure that he had lost all of his capabilities to feel anything in the passing decades, but that apparently is not the case.

Or perhaps his little infatuation will pass with time, and turn out to be just that, little infatuation. Changbin sort of wishes it will do that. This… thing, it may affect his and Seungmin’s friendship, and Changbin doesn’t want that. He adores the boy (a bit too much, apparently), he wants to keep being friends, as they share the same views of the world (at least sort of), and his presence in Changbin’s life is much more permanent than that of other people. Changbin needs exactly that, stability, he knows it, he hasn’t had anything stable in his life for decades. Centuries, perhaps, Changbin doesn’t know, of course he doesn’t, time doesn’t pass for him. Perhaps time is the only stable thing in his life.

Does Seungmin feel the same? Most likely not. Changbin really doubts that. He’s too busy for feelings, he’s too much in danger to even think about that. And, c’mon, Changbin isn’t anything special. Seungmin has talked of Chan multiple times, he most likely visits him just as often as Changbin. And he talks a lot about Hyunjin and Jeongin, too, and he’s visited at least once Minho’s timeline. Changbin is nothing special.

Changbin picks up the fallen chair, places it in the corner where it belongs, before straightening the little table in between the sofa and armchairs. Yeah, he’s nothing special, and his little fancy will pass. It has to. Changbin can’t let it take his focus away from the task at hand.

Suddenly, he hears a buzz, from the bathroom. His heartbeat accelerates, as he runs over, tears the tile off of its place and reaches for the messager inside it. He clicks it open, and reads the screen.  
[FROM:] Bang Chan  
Bambam answered “free”.

***

[FROM:] Kim Seungmin  
What do you mean?

[FROM:] Bang Chan  
He sent a message that said “free”.

[FROM:] Kim Seungmin  
Can it be trusted? It’s not the system?

[FROM:] Bang Chan  
I don’t know. Do we have a choice? What is there to lose?

Time, perhaps. Changbin has noticed a pattern in the messages. The answering person always waits five minutes to send a message, just to be sure that at least a few people can see the message, and perhaps write it down if there’s something important. That’s what Changbin does, he types the conversations with his typewriter, before hiding the papers into his books.

[FROM:] Han Jisung  
free? they got out?

Changbin is surprised to see Jisung sending a message. Or perhaps he’s just being very close-minded.  
[FROM:] Hwang Hyunjin  
What’s the next move?

[FROM:] Lee Minho  
Didn’t Bambam speak of the door, too?

[FROM:] Kim Seungmin  
He did. All of the 34th did.

[FROM:] Bang Chan  
So there has to be something behind it.

[FROM:] Kim Seungmin  
We need guns. We need to get the door open somehow.

[FROM:] Hwang Hyunjin  
I can get guns, they’re pretty much free here these days.

[FROM:] Lee Felix  
I’ve missed most of the conversation what’s going on?

[FROM:] Kim Seungmin  
34th allegedly got out, we’re going to be next.

[FROM:] Kim Seungmin  
Hyunjin, bring everything you can get, but not yet, not to the next report. We need more information.

After that, the line falls quiet. Changbin sighs, he stares Seungmin’s name on the screen. He fears the future, but he fears more of getting stuck. He hopes Bambam and his squad actually got out, and the message isn’t the System playing games on them.

Suddenly, the screen lights up again

[FROM:] Lee Minho  
Chan, when will you visit again, I miss you

[FROM:] Bang Chan  
Tonight, my love

***

It's evening, Changbin is freshly out of shower as the doorbell rings. He runs for it, as he always does, and only after opening the door he realizes he’s in his pajamas and Seungmin is standing on the other side, looking as good as always.  
“I hope you aren't going to sleep yet”, Seungmin pushes past Changbin into the hallway of his apartment. He takes off his shoes, hangs his jacket on the coat rack, throws his hat on top of it. He clearly plans on staying just a bit longer tonight.  
“I wasn’t”, Changbin mutters, still drying his dark hair with his towel. Seungmin eyes his pajamas, a tiny quirk tugging the corners of his mouth.

Then his eyes travel up and fall on the bruise on Changbin’s cheek. He reaches for Changbin’s face with his fingers, gently turns his head to a better angle to see the bruise. Changbin nearly jerks away from the touch, but just nearly.  
“What happened? Are you alright?” Seungmin has concern laced in his voice, Changbin can hear it. It tugs his heartstrings. Seungmin’s fingertips feel soft.  
“System paid a visit. Destroyed half of my belongings in the process, they know that the listening devices have occasionally been shut off, they suspect something is going on.”

An apologetic look flashes in Seungmin’s eyes:  
“Sorry, it’s my fault. I thought I had checked them properly and turned them back on. They usually do that on their own, but I need to be extra careful from now on.”  
“It’s alright, they didn’t find anything, I think they have let me off the hook for now.”  
Seungmin frowns at Changbin, he studies Changbin’s face a little more. Changbin knows he is not a pretty sight, his nose is a little swollen, too. After a fraction of a moment, Seungmin turns away, walks further into the house. Changbin throws his used towel somewhere in the bathroom, he’ll have to wash it tomorrow.

Seungmin has made himself comfortable on Changbin’s sofa again. There are a few candles lit on the little glass table. Thank god it hadn’t shattered with the System’s visit.  
“What brought you here this time?” Changbin asks, sits on the armchair opposite to Seungmin, as he always does. He can hear someone honking their car horn outside.  
“Loneliness”, Seungmin grins, mischief on the high of his browbone; “and I wanted to see that you’re alright. I suppose you’re not used to getting your ass kicked.”  
“And you are?”  
“You know I am, you have seen it yourself.” Right, Changbin has seen it himself. It hasn’t been just once or twice that the white suited men of the System have dragged Seungmin through the report room’s door.  
“No, I’m kidding, I’m actually here to cause you more pain. We need to take the chip out.” The mischief from Seungmin’s eyes disappears. He fishes out something from his pocket, wrapped to safety. Seungmin opens the wrap to reveal a knife. A scalpel, to be exact. Changbin shudders.  
“Now?” Changbin isn’t very much fancying this.  
“Yeah. We don’t know how soon we get the plan to work.”  
“Oh.” Oh well, it’s Seungmin doing the removal, Changbin will handle it. He has to.

So they end up in the kitchen, Changbin pushes the carpet out of the way as he settles on the stool in front of the kitchen table. There’s a bottle of alcohol, he doesn’t have any disinfectant, and a few towels on the table. Seungmin’s hand ghosts over his shoulders, Changbin nearly leans into the touch. He needs to get a grip of himself. He feels Seungmin move the collar of his pajamas out of the way. With his fingers he feels the chip in Changbin’s neck, Changbin feels it move just underneath his skin.  
“Are you ready?” Seungmin asks quietly, close to Changbin’s ear. It sends shivers down his spine.  
“No. Yes.” He closes his eyes, and the next thing he knows is pain.

Pain, and somewhat less of it than he anticipated. Seungmin slices a tiny wound next to the chip, Changbin bites his tongue. He puts the scalpel on the table, and then the pain seems to set ablaze. Changbin winces, closes his eyes, he feels it, how Seungmin pulls the chip out, there’s blood dripping down on his neck. Seungmin is fast, soon the pain subdues again, just to flare up again as Seungmin presses a towel wet with alcohol against Changbin’s neck. And dear god, how Changbin wants to pull away from the pain, but he doesn’t, he screws his eyes shut and bites his tongue to not seem weak.

Soon Seungmin lets go of him, presses a tissue against the bleeding wound as he wraps a gauze around Changbin’s neck.  
“It’s done. You won’t have to keep the wrap on it for long, but just for tonight since you’ll probably head to sleep soon.” Changbin doesn’t want to sleep soon. Soon means that Seungmin will leave. He opens his eyes, he knows there is some wetness brimming in the corners. He glances at the little chip on one of the towels. It’s black, and there’s a little light flickering on it.  
“Thank you.”  
“No problem. Remember to keep the chip with you at all times, though. Except when we leave, then you must drop it or something. We haven’t planned that far yet.” Seungmin washes the blood out of his hands, before he sits down on the stool next to Changbin. With wobbly feet Changbin rises up, cleans the remaining supplies back to their places. He leaves the chip on the table after cleaning it with a tissue. The wound on his neck throbs. So does his heart.

“This isn’t the first time you’re digging chips out of people, I suppose?” Changbin asks, just out of sheer curiosity.  
“It isn’t. I took Chan’s out, too. And my own.”  
“Ouch.”  
“Hurts less than digging your own eye out.”

Changbin’s mouth falls open out of shock at that. There’s no laughter in Seungmin’s voice. It is not a joke.  
“Wh- why did you? I-if I may ask, how did you lose it? You don’t have to answer if it’s too invasive.”  
“Don’t worry, I wouldn’t have brought it up unless I wasn’t comfortable sharing it with you. And it’s nothing out of the ordinary. I got a parasite in it a few decades ago, and we were on the run and that was the immediate only solution. Otherwise I would have died in a few days, the parasite was a nasty one. After that I got a robotic eye in the old one’s place.”  
Changbin can’t help but stare at Seungmin for a while. Jesus Christ, how is this boy still alive? He hadn’t joked when he had called his timeline hell.  
“Robotic? What…? Is it somehow… different, then?”  
“I see with it as if it were a real eye. That’s pretty much it. Or, well, I mean, the sight in it is better than in my real eye. So I guess it’s somehow different, then.”  
“Oh… that’s good? I guess?” Changbin doesn’t know what to say. Seungmin looks so nonchalant, as he always does while talking about such things. He’s numb, Changbin realizes. He should be traumatized, he should be feeling things, he should be anything but an emotionless rock, but he isn’t. He’s numb. And that’s not good. Because the numbness always hides something. It hides everything.

Seungmin just shrugs. The clock on the wall ticks, signs that it is half past twelve at midnight. Seungmin has stayed quite a bit longer than before, which is why he sighs, fiddles with the rings in his fingers.  
“I don’t want to go”, he mumbles, quiet, but not quiet enough for Changbin not to hear it.  
“Then don’t”, Changbin answers. Seungmin gives him a crooked smile, they both know he has to. He can’t stay. Even if he wants to.

Seungmin rises from his seat, Changbin follows him to the hallway. He watches as Seungmin puts his shoes and coat on. He wants to ask the question that hangs in between them in the air, but suddenly shyness takes over him. The shyness hasn’t been there before. Changbin knows what it is about, and he’s not sure if he likes it or not.  
“Will you visit again?” He finally utters.  
“You always ask that, even if you know I will”, Seungmin laughs at him. It’s a sound that makes Changbin’s fingertips tingle. A little smile finds its way to the corners of his mouth. His heart skips a beat. He can’t wait for that specific again.

***

A week passes, the air is stagnant, nothing happens. Changbin doesn’t hear from Seungmin.

Until he does. The messager buzzes Changbin rushes to it, he’s just back home from work. His briefcase bumps against the floor as Changbin tears the tiles off, fishes the device out of its little box. He clicks it open.  
[FROM:] Kim Seungmin  
danger

***

Changbin is anxious. He’s so fucking anxious he feels like suffocating. He’s walking towards the city hall, he has nothing with him, except the chip in his coat’s pocket, and a handgun in his breast pocket, he always has it with him, it’s System approved. He’s wearing a polo shirt, covering the healing scar on his neck. It’s nearly healed already, it’s been two weeks since Seungmin dug it out. Two weeks since Changbin last saw Seungmin. He had only sent one message, the word danger in it, and Changbin was anxious and Changbin still is, he’s scared, afraid that something has happened to him.

And Hyunjin. Three days after that message, Jeongin had sent a message as well “they took Hyunjin”, that had been all in it, and then the lines had fallen silent again. No one dares to say a word now. Changbin can feel it, the atmosphere has shifted, everyone’s holding their breaths, wishing for the best, hoping for the worst.

And Changbin is anxious, and he’s on his way to the report, he opens the door behind the city hall and steps into that same white hallway, walks through it, his steps speed up, will Seungmin be at the other end? And he opens the door to a room half-full, he searches and searches – but finds no Seungmin. Changbin’s stomach lurches.

Suddenly his eyes find Hyunjin’s. He’s sitting next to Jeongin, holding his head low. He’s beaten up and bruised, his other eye has nearly swollen shut. The tight knot of anxiety and fear in Changbin’s stomach twists. He sits behind Jeongin, Minho and Chan are sitting in the front row.

The screen lights up, Changbin wants to vomit as he reads the word System, and the report begins. There won’t be other people present today. There won’t be Seungmin today.

The report passes, Changbin can’t stop fidgeting, he wants it to be over, is there any way how he could visit Seungmin’s timeline? Could he ask Chan where to find the timeframes? Since he seems to know a lot about them. Or perhaps Jeongin would know something and help him blend in to the 25th century.

But the report is over, sooner than he has time to form a plan, as it always is, there’s nothing new, Hyunjin doesn’t speak when the System asks for their report, Jeongin does it for him, holding him by his hand, holding him close. Chan leaves the room first, not before glancing at Minho, who leaves after him. Jeongin and Hyunjin stand up, Hyunjin is limping, and abruptly Changbin stands up, too. It causes a scene, it’s out of the ordinary, he shouldn’t be doing it, but he is.

“Seungmin… is he… is he alright?” Changbin mumbles, as quietly as he can, so quietly that Hyunjin reads the question from his lips. He doesn’t say anything, simply turns away, follows Jeongin as he’s tugging him by his hand to leave the room. Changbin swallows.

Just before the pair exits the door, Hyunjin turns his head, just enough for Changbin to see a bit of his side profile.

And then, he ever so slightly, nods.

***

It’s a chilly autumn evening. The trees along the sidewalk have started to get more yellow. Changbin finds peace in it, all things must come to an end, and then the peace shatters as he remembers that nothing will come to an end for him. He’s on his way back home from work, his case is rather heavy, there are a few stacks of papers in it that he has to go through before tomorrow’s meeting. The clock ticks past seven, he got off very late from work today. He’s exhausted, to say the least, he’s been stressed for the past week, anxious as well, it’s been four days since the report. Four days since Hyunjin gave Changbin that tiny nod, and a tiny amount of fear had let go of Changbin, only to return the day after as there still were no signs of Seungmin.

Changbin sighs, he runs a hand through his black locks, he had forgot his hat this morning as well. The leaves rustle in the trees as the light breeze passes by them. The yellow light of the streetlights show Changbin his way through the city streets. The city is alive, Changbin can feel it, it’s Thursday night and the new casino in the center opened its doors a few days ago for the first time. Everyone’s on their way there, Changbin should go visit it at some point, too, he needs to write an article about it.

“A penny for your thoughts?” Changbin nearly shrieks as a figure steps out from an alley, he drops his briefcase in a puddle, the water splashes on his leathery shoes. The figure steps into the light, and a heaviness is finally lifted from Changbin’s shoulders.  
“Seungmin”, he breathes out, before pulling him into a tight hug. Seungmin tenses, before relaxing, he’s warm, he smells of burnt wood. Then Changbin realizes what he’s doing and quickly pulls away.  
“O-oh I’m sorry, I was just, I was just… just a bit… concerned”, Changbin stutters.  
Seungmin cocks his eyebrow, and Changbin swallows. Seungmin looks… bad. Worse than Hyunjin had. His lower lip is split, his cheek is swollen, there’s another little cut on the high of his eyebrow, above the robotic eye. He tries to smile a bit, but it clearly hurts:  
“Sorry for making you concerned.”  
Changbin simply shakes his head: “What happened? What did they do to you?”

Seungmin glances over the street, there are a few people walking, a few leaves fall down from the tree next to them. A car passes by them. The evening is a rather perfect fall evening, it’s not too cold, nor too warm, not too humid, but not too dry either. It’s crisp and nearly serene. Changbin likes such autumn evenings.  
“Walk with me for a moment, will you?” Seungmin turns towards the way Changbin had been going, and starts to walk. He limps. Changbin doesn’t mention it, the crease between his eyebrows gives away the concern, as he grabs his briefcase from the puddle.

Seungmin stays quiet for a moment. He pushes his hands into the pockets of his black longcoat, shudders as a breeze passes by. The sun has nearly set, the last hues of orange paint the sky before falling into velvety darkness.  
“System paid a visit to me, too. I just wasn’t fast enough to hide my messager.”  
“Then why did they-“  
“Hyunjin’s message was the last one on the screen, and they saw it. Hyunjin insisted that Jeongin knew nothing of the thing and he was conspiring only with me, resulting that both of us were taken to the headquarters. They tried to get information out of us, we came up with a little story to lead them astray. They think that only Hyunjin saw the ‘danger’-message.”  
“Oh.”  
“Yeah.”  
“Then how… how are you still alive? If the System found out you’re planning to do things behind their back?”  
“They didn’t find out what I was planning, just that I had been visiting other timelines. They didn’t even realize that I have my chip out. And they can’t afford to kill me. They don’t have anyone else for my timeline, they need to find someone first and then train them, and only then I can be replaced. Same with Hyunjin, since Jeongin refuses to work alone and the nature of their timeline requires double agents that trust wholly each other.”  
“Ah. I see.”

“How’s your week been?” Seungmin asks, changing the topic. Again, Changbin is left speechless at how… unaffected Seungmin sounds like.  
“Normal. Work. Just work.”  
“I’m glad it’s normal. I wish I would have your normal.”  
And in a way, Changbin does, too. Seungmin doesn’t deserve to live in that world full of constant pain. No one does. Except maybe the System.

They walk along the street, Changbin doesn’t make then turn from the corner that leads to his home. Instead, they head towards the park. It’s pretty in evenings like these, Changbin knows it. Perhaps they will see a few stars as well, at least he hopes so.  
“How is the plan going otherwise?” Changbin asks. Seungmin huffs, pouts a little, it makes Changbin’s toes tingle.  
“Fairly well. We have taken the chips out of everyone. It was hard to blend into Jisung’s timeline but we did it with Felix. Hyunjin and Jeongin took each other’s out. And Chan took Minho’s. Obviously.” Yeah, those two got something going on, that is clear to Changbin nowadays as well. And to think he had been so sure that Seungmin visited other timelines as often as his…

“I honestly… I honestly don’t think that we can get any more prepared than this. We have guns, Hyunjin has them, and you have yours as well. We will never know what’s behind the door, all we know is that the 36th got out and sent the last message that just said the word “free”, and they aren’t the only ones that have gone through that door, apparently. So we just have to do it the next time we are all in the same report. We’ll lock the door and open the other one and then run out. No one knows what’s on the other side. Perhaps nothing. Perhaps death. Perhaps a new life. I want to find out. It’s the only thing that keeps me going.”  
“And if it’s just death, then so be it. I don’t think there’s fate worse than to live in the hell I currently live in as part of the last generation.”

Changbin simply nods, again. They have reached the edge of the park. It’s quiet, Changbin can only see a few figures sitting close to the fountain in the middle. The trees shade the ground, drown them into the shadows. Seungmin sighs. Changbin realizes how perhaps odd the situation is – only a few months ago he knew nothing of Seungmin, and now they are… close? Perhaps not close, not in a way Changbin wishes them to be, but they’re friends. Changbin hasn’t had those in a while. And here they are, planning a revolution of their own lives, and neither of them can’t even fathom the thought of the revolution failing.

Then Seungmin kicks a few leaves, sends them flying, giggles lightly as they do their little dance in the air. Changbin raises an eyebrow at him, Seungmin kicks more leaves.  
“We don’t have autumn. It’s just nuclear winter all year round.”  
“Oh. Autumn is my favorite season.”  
“I can see why. Death and sadness and rain and cold. Poetic.”  
Changbin snorts at Seungmin, nudges his side a bit with his arm.  
“No. Warmth and warm colors and hot tea and rain puddles and leaves that crunch under your feet. And I get to wear my favorite woolly jumpers without getting too hot.”  
Seungmin giggles again, before walking through all the leaves, creating a little path after himself. There are so many yellow and orange leaves, all around them. Seungmin kicks them again, a smile stretches to his lips. Changbin just stares at him, he can’t even do anything else. His mind is just Seungmin. God, how he wished he could just snatch him, live with him until forever in the roaring twenties. Hide with him to some little farm house away from people, that’s what he wanted. A future with him. Maybe his little infatuation has got a little out of hand.

Seungmin crouches, starts forming a little pile with the leaves. Soon it’s not just a little pile anymore, but a rather large one. There’s laughter in his eyes, Changbin adores it. He likes seeing him somewhat happy. He’s okay, a bit bruised and beaten up, perhaps, but he’s okay. He’s alive. And he’s with Changbin, and that’s what matters. For a moment Changbin feels like he can protect Seungmin from everything the world has to offer.

“C’mon, Changbin, I have never played in autumn leaves before.”  
“Oh. You haven’t?” Changbin sometimes wishes to smack the stupidity out of himself.  
“No. Play with me. Come on, writer boy, live a little. Or have you forgotten how to?”  
He has. That’s correct.  
“Well then”, Changbin abandons his briefcase before crouching down and hoarding an armful of leaves from the ground. He throws them directly at the back of Seungmin’s neck, just as he’s about to stand up from the ground. The boy shrieks, laughter in his voice.  
“What the hell, Changbin!”  
“You said you have never played in the autumn leaves before!” Changbin giggles, Seungmin grabs leaves from the ground and throws them at Changbin’s face. Changbin gets a mouthful of damp leaves, and retaliates by throwing more Seungmin’s way.

And then it’s a full on battle, in which there’s no other goal than to just throw leaves at the other person as much as they can, and soon Changbin loses himself in the laughter and the rustling and Seungmin’s shrieks. It isn’t until Seungmin yells “stop, stop, stop!” while nearly choking on laughter, that Changbin lets the last leaves drop back to the ground from his hands; “okay, you win!”, Seungmin is breathless, so is Changbin. For a moment he wonders where his briefcase is, and then Seungmin suddenly pulls him down on to the huge pile of leaves he had just a while ago created.

Changbin ends up in the pile next to Seungmin, staring at the boundless sky above them. He freezes for a moment; he has no idea what to do in such situation. Part of him wants to hold Seungmin’s hand. Part of him knows he can’t do that. The latter is stronger.  
“You still haven’t taken me to that museum”, Seungmin mumbles. He’s still breathing hard, but not as hard as Changbin is. He is clearly in better shape. Used to running. Used to lasting.  
“I’ll take you there next time you visit, if it’s daytime.”  
“Part of me hopes there won’t be next time.”  
That stings, Changbin has to admit it. Even if he himself wishes that as well. The less meetings, the better.  
“Mmhm”, Changbin simply hums in a bitter agreement.

“What do you think is in there?” Seungmin asks, quietly.  
“Where?”  
“Behind the door.”  
“I don’t know.” Changbin answers, truthfully; “I hope it’s a better tomorrow.”  
“I hope so too. I wish it’s… something else than this. I want to live. And get old. And die. And see the stars every night.” Seungmin stares at the sky. Only a few stars, the brightest ones can be seen, the light pollution drowns the rest out. Changbin is sad that Seungmin hasn’t had the chance to live, or see the stars properly in his timeline. He hopes those things will change.

“Have you ever fallen in love?”  
Changbin nearly chokes on air at the question.  
“You are being very questioning today, aren’t you?”  
“We are stargazing, Changbin. Isn’t that always the time in those books that you read where the protagonists question everything and think about love long lost?”

Changbin stares at the space for a moment. The park is quiet, the talk of the few people far away from them doesn’t reach their ears. The trees and bushes keep the sounds of the streets away. Changbin soaks in the question for a moment.  
“I have.”

Seungmin remains quiet for a while. Changbin can feel the air shifting into something… more.  
“Who were they?”  
He can feel Seungmin’s hand close to his. Very close. An inch and their fingers would touch.  
“They were someone from ages ago.”  
“A normal human?”  
Changbin hums as an answer.  
“Didn’t the System tell you exactly not to do that.”  
“They did, but unfortunately I learn best from experience.”

“Do you miss them?”  
“Not really. It’s been so long that I have nearly forgotten their face.”  
“Did you swear to not ever fall in love again after that?”  
“…Yes.” Not only learns Changbin best from experience, he’s also rather big on breaking his own principles.  
“I have never fallen in love”, Seungmin confesses; “at least I think I haven’t. I don’t know. It’s such a… big feeling.”  
“It is”, Changbin agrees. He doesn’t know if he should feel sad by Seungmin’s words or not.

“But it’s okay. I’m not really even looking for love. I mean, I don’t really think I deserve it. I don’t think there’s really anything to love in me, so I don’t really look for it. I’m just a broken shell with years of trauma. What is there left to love?”

Changbin blanks. He nearly stands up, but instead he simply sits up. He just stares at Seungmin for a moment, he tries to search for words, really tries, and for a moment he hates that he’s better at forming words while writing than while speaking.  
“There’s everything left to love”, he finally mutters; “your trauma doesn’t change that. You are worthy of love despite it, and with it.”

The shadows hide Seungmin’s face, the streetlights aren’t strong enough, so Changbin doesn’t see the other boy’s expression. He doesn’t know what to do, how to convince the boy that there is so incredibly much to love in him, he just wants to yell it at his face, he’s selfless and kind and perfect and beautiful and strong and stardust and everything anyone could ever wish for, he’s the reason Changbin is breaking all the rules he’s ever set for himself. It’s not just a light infatuation anymore, oh, it definitely isn’t.

But he doesn’t yell anything. He doesn’t say anything, because Seungmin’s pocket buzzes and he jumps up from the pile.  
“Shit. Shit, I forgot the time. I need to go. See you, Changbin.”

And then he’s running, and disappointment tightens its hold of Changbin. He had his chance, and now it’s gone, and he doesn’t know when he will get one again. One thing is clear to him, however – Seungmin needs to know. Changbin has to tell him how he feels. He needs to tell the boy that he is lovable and there is so much in him. He has to. He needs to.

Changbin curses. The longest distance between two people is not miles, it’s the time itself.

***

A week passes, then another, and finally there’s a call for a report. Only Felix is present with Changbin, the halls are quiet, as they always are. The messager is quiet, too, apart from Hyunjin telling them that he has found proper guns. Everything is quiet, too quiet, deafeningly quiet, Changbin’s heart aches, it aches for Seungmin, he just wants to see the boy because he’s selfish like that, but he knows he can’t see him. They spent too much time together the last time, the System might be onto them. They need to keep a low profile. And perhaps Seungmin doesn’t even want to see him, perhaps Changbin scared him away with his affection. Changbin wishes that isn’t the case.

Another report, Seungmin is in it, sitting in the first row next to Jisung. His bruises have healed, so the System isn’t onto them. Changbin wants to say something, anything really, when will Seungmin visit again, the leaves from the trees have fallen, the museum ticket prices have been lowered for this week, this could be our chance, I have something to tell you, but he doesn’t. Seungmin glances at him as he leaves, nods his head just a tiny bit, Changbin answers with a light nod. Changbin has a new suit, lighter in color, Seungmin clearly notices that.

Another report passes, there’s only five of them. Autumn slowly bleeds into winter. Changbin is starting to lose hope. They haven’t spent time together with Seungmin at all, but the feeling in the pits of his stomach just doesn’t falter. He sees him in the reports, there’s occasionally an accidental touch on his shoulder as he passes by him, but that’s all. Changbin wants to ask why he’s not visiting, until he sees another bruise underneath his cheek. A few messages are sent via the messager, and Changbin realizes that Seungmin isn’t answering in any of them. The device has been taken from him, or he has destroyed it for their protection, he guesses. Another report, there’s only Chan and Changbin. Chan looks tired. Exhausted. Anxious. Changbin is losing hope.

He is losing hope.

The System has found out, hasn’t it? That’s why there’s only a few people in the reports at the time. They won’t let them into the same space at the same time, not when there’s a personal revolution brewing in their minds. They want to kill that revolution, take it away from them, tear it to pieces like they have done for the time. Changbin is losing hope, and he is losing Seungmin, and once again he sits on the third stool in the room layered with wired fence and plastic. The clocks on the walls tick away, none of their times match Changbin’s. Hyunjin and Jeongin are sitting in front of him, Hyunjin looks tired. Jeongin looks hopeless.

The door opens again, Changbin doesn’t lift his gaze from the floor as Felix sits next to him. He just stares, he’s tired, he just wants to see Seungmin, the reports are the only way for him to know that he’s okay, he’s still living and breathing and the System hasn’t taken him away yet, the door opens, Chan steps in, sits behind Changbin. Not even a second passes and the door opens again, Minho steps in, he sits next to Chan. He looks a bit tired. All of them do.

Changbin waits for the screen to light up any minute now, to signal the start of the report. It doesn’t, the door opens again. Jisung steps in, clearly surprised that he’s facing six people instead of the typical three. Changbin swallows, there’s a lump forming in his throat. It can’t be, it really can’t, there will be just seven of them, System won’t let all of them in the same room anymore, not with their plans to break free. Changbin turns his head to face the front again, there’s just no hope, their plan doesn’t work, it just doesn’t, Seungmin is the final piece and he’s missing.

Until he isn’t. The door opens again, Changbin can hear Felix gasping under his breath next to him. Changbin turns his head towards the door, where he meets a boy dressed in pure white, blood staining his knees, some has splattered on his jacket. Changbin can’t help but stare, as a slightly shocked expression spreads on Seungmin’s face. He takes a few wobbly steps and sits on the last stool.

There’s eight people in the room. The whole of 66th squad is present. They’re all in a report together. The time seems to stop.

The screen lights up, Changbin doesn’t know what to do, how to act, what are they supposed to do now, the room is suddenly filled with tension, Chan moves on his seat, he’s uncomfortable, he’s anxious, so is Changbin.  
“Hwang Hyunjin and Yang Jeongin, report”, a voice speaks. It sounds deafeningly loud, it rings in Changbin’s ears.  
“There’s no big changes. Everything seems to have stopped”, Hyunjin says. His voice wavers.  
“Seo Changbin, report.” Changbin can hear his heartbeat in his ears, the blood in his veins, the silence in the room. He breathes in, breathes out:  
“T-the twenties just keep roaring and the economy continues soaring. There are no big changes.” There never really is, his timeline is always rather quiet.  
“Lee Felix, report.”  
“A new queen is rising from the east. Otherwise it’s been quiet.”  
“Bang Chan, report.”  
“The pandemic has evolved and over two hundred thousand deaths have been counted. It’s not showing signs of slowing down.”  
“Lee Minho, report.”  
“The war is as cold as ever. No big changes here either.” Minho’s voice is the steadiest of them all. There’s laughter in it. Excitement. He lives for the thrill.  
“Han Jisung, report.”  
“It’s been quiet.”  
“Kim Seungmin, report.”

There’s a silence, that lasts for a few heartbeats. Changbin can feel the heaviness in the air. He isn’t sure if it’s anticipation or panic.  
“The killings have started again, they’re more systemic than before. The last generation has lost its hope. There’s no future”, he says. Changbin feels shivers running down his spine.

A silence falls. It’s suffocating. Changbin feels like he can’t breathe, he’s trapped, frozen into his place.  
“Thank you. You may return to your timelines.”

The silence deepens. Hyunjin and Jeongin rise up. Changbin can see the hesitation in Hyunjin. He eyes the people in the room, then at the screen. There’s eight of them. All of them are present.

It’s now or never.

Suddenly Hyunjin turns around, grabs the stool he had just been sitting on as Chan rises up and flings himself towards the door. Hyunjin swings the chair, throws it with vigor at the screen in front of him. The screen cracks, flashes white before going black, and then the chaos erupts.

Changbin rises from his stool, drops his chip from his pocket on the floor in the process, Felix is on his feet already.  
“Give me one of the chairs, someone help me!” Chan yells from the door, so Changbin takes his stool and blocks the door from opening with it. He’s frantic, his blood has frozen, everything around him seems to happen too fast.  
“Keep them out”, Chan says at Changbin, and right after that he can hear the sirens start to blare outside the room. He throws himself against the steel door, just as he hears clattering from the other side, next to the huge rusted doors.  
“Cover your ears!” Jeongin yells, Changbin does as he’s told, but not fast enough, the first gunshot rings through the door as Hyunjin shoots all the cameras in the corners.

Changbin’s ears are ringing by the time Hyunjin is done, and then he feels the first push against the door. It’s strong, nearly sends him off balance. He turns to look over his shoulder, where most of their squad is trying to push and pull the door open, but it doesn’t move.  
“A little help would be nice!” Changbin yells, the door is being pushed again, the stool keeps the handle from turning and the door unlocking.

Seungmin turns around and runs to Changbin, throwing himself against the door. There’s fire in his eyes, Changbin sees them alive for the first time ever. There’s a wild grin spreading on his lips. Changbin can’t afford losing that grin, they have to succeed, they have to get out, no matter what’s on the other side.  
“It’s not moving!” Minho shrieks.  
“There’s no handles, how the hell are you supposed to open this!”  
“It’s rusted shut!” Chan’s voice breaks. The hope in Seungmin’s eyes flicker. The sirens seem to get louder  
“Let me”, Changbin hears Hyunjin say, as he pushes one of the gun’s muzzle in between the doors and tries to use it as leverage.

“Open the door right now!” Someone yells from the other side. Changbin can hear guns being loaded. He knows the walls are steel, he knows the door is, too, they’re not going to attempt to shoot through it. They’re going to shoot them, if they get in.

They only have this chance. The 66th only has one chance. And so does Changbin.

Seungmin needs to know.  
“Seungmin, I need to tell you something.”  
The boy turns to look at him, there’s so much vigor in his expression that it scares Changbin. But he needs to tell him, he deserves to know, because if all else fails, Seungmin needs to know that he isn’t unlovable, nor unworthy of love.  
“Seungmin, I-“

The door is being pushed harshly, the stool nearly gives in.  
“Quick!” Seungmin yells at the people trying to get the other door open; “What is it?” He turns back to Changbin. He’s more alive than ever. The personal revolution looks good on him.  
“I-“

“Do you remember when you asked me if I swore to never fall in love again after doing so ages ago?”  
“Yes, I do, but Changbin, now is not the time talk about your love lif-“  
“Well I have broken that promise. Because of you.”  
Seungmin doesn’t understand it. Changbin feels the words sticking to his throat, he can’t force them out. Yells keep getting louder from the outside, the lights flicker, Changbin thinks he can hear Felix crying out at the door to open. The door is being pushed.

“I. I. I know you think you don’t deserve love, but you do. I know you think you are unlovable, but you aren’t. Because I… Seungmin, I love you”, Changbin whimpers the last words out. He loves him, that’s it. It’s not just light infatuation, it’s a stir in his guts and tingles in his toes and pounding in his heart. He fears the next reaction, but at the same time he doesn’t. Seungmin deserves to know, even if he himself wouldn’t return those feelings. Changbin would be okay with that, he definitely would, in fact, he hasn’t even really pictured Seungmin loving him back at all.  
“What- what are you saying?” Seungmin looks bewildered. He’s frowning, it seems like he doesn’t quite understand the depth of Changbin’s words.  
“I’m saying that I love you”, Changbin repeats. That’s all there is to it, he has nothing more to say. That’s all he has wanted to tell Seungmin ever since that night in the pile of leaves, when Seungmin had to hastily leave once again.

The door is being pushed again, it creaks, Changbin can feel it giving in under him little by little. Seungmin snaps back to present.  
“Get the fucking door open!” He screams, Changbin isn’t sure if it’s the flickering of the lights, or is there some wetness brimming in the corners of his eyes.  
“Now, Changbin, of all times?!” Seungmin yells at his face, as he’s nearly thrown off balance by one vigorous push of the door they’re holding. Yes. Now. The time is never on their side, so now. When else?

“Quick, before they break the barrier!” Someone yells from the other side. Barrier. What barrier? Time, it’s never on their side. Break the barrier. Time. No proper handles, just the clocks ticking above the door, none of them showing the real time, because time in it’s very essence isn’t real, it isn’t supposed to be measured, the nature doesn’t know time, it simply moves in cycles, the barrier, the clocks, the time, time isn’t real, no handles, none of the doors in the hallways have handles, just clocks above them, the clocks open the doors, the clocks open the doors!

“Break the clocks! Shoot them!” Changbin yells through his haze, he might be wrong, it wouldn’t be the first time, but they have to try, he and Seungmin can’t hold the door for much longer, it’s already breaking, they’re in danger, this is their only chance, Hyunjin pulls his gun out and none of them have the time to beware of the loud gunshots, one, two, three, four, to the rhythm of Changbin’s heartbeat, the glass is breaking and falling everywhere, and then, deafening silence.

Something clicks. Chan breathes in, as he for the last time pushes the huge rusted doors, and they creak open. They screech, rusted steel against the steel of the floor, Changbin’s ears ring, and suddenly white light pours from the opening, blinding Changbin momentarily. Chan pushes both of the doors open properly. There’s just white light. Nothing else. The world around them is quiet, the pushing has stopped for a moment, the System has realized that they have broken the barrier.

Chan turns around, glances at his squad, the 66th, and one of the few ones who will ever know what’s behind the door. He doesn’t say anything, he doesn’t have to, they all know it’s a jump to the unknown, none of them have any idea what’s waiting for them. And that is why he grabs Minho by his hand, turns around, and together the two of them disappear into the white light. Just like that, they’re gone, there’s nothing left of them. Changbin takes a shaky breath in. Felix is the next one to go, Jisung runs into the light just behind him, then the pushing starts, even more vigorously than before.  
“Let’s go”, Jeongin grabs Hyunjin by his hand and then it’s just Seungmin and Changbin, and the door is breaking and they’re in danger, Changbin turns to Seungmin, his eyes don’t reflect the fear Changbin feels.

And suddenly, Seungmin grabs Changbin by his cheeks, leans forwards and presses their lips together for a kiss. Changbin’s brain seems to halt, he doesn’t understand what’s happening, he just keeps on leaning against the door as Seungmin kisses him, he tastes of blood and the future and the revolution and he’s kissing Changbin and he’s kissing Changbin and it finally settles into Changbin’s brain and he kisses Seungmin back, with all the will to live he can muster up from his body. He feels alive. He feels alive!

The door is being pushed again, Changbin can hear it creaking, something breaks, and he draws away from Seungmin. He’s breathless, he hears nothing and everything at once, the white light casts shadows on Seungmin’s face, accentuates the blue of his robotic eye, and Changbin thinks he’s ethereal.  
“I love you too, I think”, Seungmin says. He’s not numb anymore, Changbin can hear it from his voice.

They simply stare at each other for a moment. Seungmin loves Changbin, too. He’s not numb to the world anymore. He’s found a set point from it, and so has Changbin. Seungmin takes him by his hand, they need to go, the door is giving up, the light is waiting, Changbin squeezes the hand in his before flashing a smile to Seungmin, as they detach themselves from the door just as it breaks. The last thing Changbin hears are shouting from the System and the gunshots, as the white light engulfs him and Seungmin, and they are finally free.

It’s just pure white, and Seungmin’s hand around his.

And then Changbin’s feet finally hit the ground.

**Author's Note:**

> My first fic fest, this was so exciting to write! This was the first time for me writing Seungbin and not gonna lie, I loved every second of it! Chronosaurus is my absolute fav Stray Kids song, and I have wanted to write a story about it for a long time, so this fic fest was just perfect for me. A Huge thank you to the mods that made this fic fest happen, I applaud you for all the hard work you did with this! 
> 
> I hope y'all had a great time while reading this and enjoyed it as much as I did! 
> 
> [twitter](https://twitter.com/dulcetchan)  
> [curiouscat](https://curiouscat.me/dulcetchan)


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